The Perfect Millé Crêpe
A/N: My first two-shot. Enjoy! Oh, R&R!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yumeiro Pâtissiére or any of its characters. I own only my laptop and my brain.
The surroundings in St. Marie were peaceful. Everybody was having classes, taking a walk, or eating. It would have been a perfect day. Save for a certain girl's shrieking.
Our favorite little brunette was panicking, yes. It was the day before her class's "Surprise Test". Everybody in class 2-A knew what it would be about, and they were not as frantic as Amano Ichigo.
Since she was the new girl, she did not know that the test would be based on your past mistakes. Ameya-sensei, of course, never forgot a single mistake.
"I haven't perfected my crêpe yet!" Ichigo wailed.
Hanabusa, Andou and Kashino all sweatdropped.
Vanilla tried to lighten her up. "Don't worry! The Sweets Princes are here to help!"
Café stared at the ground nervously. "U-uh, Vanilla? Satsuki and I have to help his mother prepare a tea party. We're already commited. G-gomen."
Ichigo started to panic even more. "A-andou-kun?"
Caramel cried. "Gomen, gomen, Ichigo-chan! Andou has a date with Kana-chan. They planned this for weeks already, desu."
Kashino's eyes widened. "You're all leaving me with Amano?"
Hanabusa smirked. "I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself, Kashino," he said as he walked out the door. "Ja."
Andou nodded, and then followed suit. "Take care of Amano-san, Maa-kun. Goodbye."
Ichigo pursed her lips quietly. "I-I guess you'd have to help me, Kashino. Could you, please?"
Kashino saw her puppy eyes, and then looked away, red in the face.
"Y-yeah. I have nothing else to do anyway." He tried to appear nonchalant, but Chocolat knew him so well, that she figured he was trying not to blush.
Ah, young love. Chocolat thought to herself. She didn't approve of Amano as the girl for Kashino, but she couldn't stop Kashino either.
Ichigo smiled. "Arigatou, Kashino."
Kashino went to the other side of Ichigo's cooking station. He set up the usual ingredients for making crêpe. Flour, eggs, the works.
"Its very simple. All you have to do, is perfect the timing. When you flip it, and when you take it off of the pan." While saying so, Kashino made one.
He grabbed a plate, placed the crêpe there, and then started to work. It was a simple treat, to lighten up Amano's demeanor. He spread cream on the inside, and then placed three sliced strawberries on the cream. He wrapped it, and then poured chocolate syrup on top. And then, almost as an afterthought, he placed the last slice of the strawberry on top of the crêpe.
He placed the plate in front of Ichigo. "Here. Put a smile on your face and eat up. Its not a Millé Crêpe, but I'm sure we could get to that later."
Ichigo smiled her wide smile, the tears on her eyes sparkling. "Thank you so much, Kashino. Let's eat, Vanilla!"
Kashino frowned. "J-just because I made you one, doesn't mean I'll go easy on you! You have to perfect this, or else our grades would flunk because of you."
Despite the harsh words, Ichigo still smiled. "It's okay. I know that. Here, have a bite."
She offered some of the crêpe to him. Kashino shook his head. "N-."
Ichigo stuffed his mouth with a forkful of crêpe. "Too late." She chirped.
Kashino turned beet red. "I s-said I didn't want any!" But he swallowed anyway.
Vanilla laughed. "This crêpe is good, Chocolat! Have some! Ch-chocolat?"
The raven haired Spirit was inside a bowl, sleeping soundly.
Vanilla laughed, and then yawned. She joined her friend inside the bowl.
"Goodnight, Ichigo."
If Ichigo heard this, she certainly didn't say anything, because she was already too busy making the batter of the crêpe. She had to make it four times to make the texture perfect, and the taste even better.
Unfortunately, that was the easy part.
"Now, you do it multiple times, so that you can make the 'thousand' part. Remember, 'mille' means a thousand, alright?" Kashino instructed with determination.
Ichigo just nodded. She made twenty four crêpe layers, and then stacked them up, one by one, adding a thin spread of cream and sliced strawberries in the middle of each layer. After she was done stacking, she carefully poured melted chocolate on top of the mille crêpe, and then spread it all out evenly. She sliced the top of another strawberry, and placed it on top. Ichigo smiled at her own creation.
"Hey, Kashi-." Kashino was already sleeping on his chair, his head leaning on his own shoulder. Ichigo smiled at the scene.
She remembered that drink he had once made for her. Chocolate Chaud.
Ichigo smiled, and then started making the drink. After, she decided to wake Kashino up.
"Kashino? Kashino?" She whispered quietly, all the while nudging him in the shoulder.
Kashino opened his eyes somewhat groggily. "What?"
Ichigo pushed the cup of chocolate towards him. "Thanks for helping me. Drink this."
Kashino, for the first time, smiled at her. "Thanks."
Ichigo shut her eyes. Make him something with chocolate? Are you not using your head, Amano?
To her surprise, Kashino laughed. "This is actually good. No need to get nervous. By the way, what happened to your crêpe?"
Ichigo hid the crêpe behind her back. If Kashino was being nice, she decided to take advantage of the moment. "Do you want to eat it with me?"
Kashino frowned. "Sure. Where is it? Did you fail?" He demanded.
The brunette took it from behind her back, and then presented it to Kashino.
"Why did you put chocolate?" was his first question.
"I-I don't know. I was experimenting, I guess." Ichigo replied, shutting her eyes again. Kashino ate the first bite. It was agonizingly painful for her, how she had to wait for whatever his comment would be.
"Good."
That was it. Good.
Amano Ichigo opened her eyes, and then smiled at Kashino. "Thanks again, Kashino."
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